Are people inherently good? This philosophical question has been contested in courtrooms and classrooms throughout the centuries as people try to determine true human nature. Amid difficult life situations, individuals, non-profits and religious organizations try to make a positive difference by changing the human condition for the better. These actions, commonly referred to as social justice, exist worldwide and are found predominantly in religious institutions. Looking specifically at Jewish and Read More…
The Great Plague of Marseilles of 1720 was the last major outbreak of the infamous Bubonic Plague in Europe. Besides killing 100,000, it demonstrated the continuing power the Black Death had over the mentality of the western world, sending the whole of Europe into a panic. Despite that, though, it also showed how an increasingly centralized authority in public health could make a difference and stymie the spread of an Read More…
One afternoon while discussing the dispute between China and Japan over the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, a Chinese friend told me that if China fought with Japan over the islands, he would join the army to defend China’s claim. Moreover, he wanted China to go to war over the five uninhabited islands in the East China Sea. I was speechless. A smart, affable young man was willing for himself and his country Read More…
Recent cross-cultural studies have found that Americans respond very differently to cognitive tasks than practically any other human population. A better understanding of these differences will allow us to improve our foreign policy, diplomacy, and business transactions. An exciting new framework for understanding cultural differences in behavior and cognition is relational mobility, which is a way of describing the fluidity of social boundaries within a community. If boundaries are fluid, Read More…
Neotectonics is the study of tectonic movements younger than 35 million years old. This subdiscipline of structural geology is highly relevant to understanding current seismic activity, studying contemporary topography, and explaining older geologic processes. My project will investigate the Thousand Lakes Mountain Fault, which is a young, poorly understood fault located in central Utah. I will examine the kinematics of the fault’s movement, its age, the regional geologic setting, and Read More…
